If this is your first visit, be sure to
check out the FAQ by clicking the
link above. You may have to register
before you can post: click the register link above to proceed. To start viewing messages,
select the forum that you want to visit from the selection below.

New Federal Law Coming?

I have been informed that the deputy director of the National Center for Victims of Crime said that H. RES. 303, a proposed federal law, passed unanimously today in the House of Representatives! We're not sure at this time, but it sounds like this means it will become law.

H. RES. 303 states that "a day ought to be established to bring awareness to the issue of missing persons."

Missing children have their national day. Now all missing persons will have a day to remember and honor them, should this bill be signed into law. I have confidence it will and am checking to find more information about it.

I believe this is the same bill that my friends Doug and Mary Lyall from the Center for Hope have been working on for several years. I will get more clarification tomorrow.

RESOLUTION

Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that a day ought to be established to bring awareness to the issue of missing persons.

Whereas each year tens of thousands of people go missing in the United States;

Whereas, on any given day, there are as many as 100,000 active missing persons cases in the United States;

Whereas the Missing Persons File of the National Crime Information Center (NCIC) was implemented in 1975;

Whereas, in 2005, 109,531 persons were reported missing to law enforcement agencies nationwide, of whom 11,868 were between the ages of 18 and 20;

Whereas section 204 of the PROTECT Act, known as Suzanne's Law and passed by Congress on April 10, 2003, modifies section 3701(a) of the Crime Control Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 5779(a)), so that agencies must enter records into the NCIC database for all missing persons under the age of 21;

Whereas Kristen's Act (42 U.S.C. 14665), passed in 1999, has established grants for organizations to, among other things, track missing persons and provide informational services to families and the public;

Whereas, according to the NCIC, 48,639 missing persons were located in 2005, an improvement of 4.2 percent from the previous year;

Whereas many persons reported missing may be victims of Alzheimer's disease or other health-related issues, or may be victims of foul play;

Whereas, regardless of age or circumstances, all missing persons have families who need support and guidance to endure the days, months, or years they may spend searching for their missing loved ones; and

Whereas it is important to applaud the committed efforts of families, law enforcement agencies, and concerned citizens who work to locate missing persons and to prevent all forms of victimization: Now, therefore, be it

Resolved, That it is the sense of the House of Representatives that--

(1) a day ought to be established to bring awareness to the issue of missing persons; and